Printing industry across the country also may not be fully geared to cater to the volume demand

The Election Commission’s notification that political parties shall use eco-friendly media material for their publicity campaigns ahead of the Lok Sabha elections may not cut ice with the targeted groups. It is learnt that the political parties in general may not adhere to the green norms keeping in view the additional costs involved.

Manish Taneja, Director, Taneja Technocom told Media4Growth, the notification for use of eco-friendly media material had “come as a ray of hope for our industry and we had prepared a descriptive presentation for the political parties and the media owners handling their campaigns to explain the benefits that eco-friendly material can add not only to the environment but to the parties’ image as well.” However, the political parties have seemingly side-stepped the issue.

He reckons that many political parties are not amenable to spend extra on green fabrics, and instead would want to use those cost savings on a wider coverage their respective campaigns.

Deepak Gupta, Director of Sun Sign & Technologies, said, “The biggest reason for political parties to not use this material is the slow printing speed as the entire political outdoor is a volume-based game where huge numbers of banners are required overnight in different parts of the country. Moreover, currently a very small number of printing machines are equipped to print on such material and stocks of eco-friendly materials aren’t available to meet the demand.” He also made a point that even non-political campaigns are running PVC flex displays.

However, the situation is not the same in every part of the country. As Manesh Kumar, COO, Shiva Texyarn operating in the southern part of the country shared, “There has been a positive impact of this notification in the Kerala market. Enquires about our cotton fabric are coming from printers and suppliers. The fabric is light and foldable. We are now looking for similar opportunities in the Bengaluru market.”